Review
“A match made in some crazed, satirical heaven: Will Self and Ralph Steadman. A continuation and expansion of themes from an earlier collaboration, "Psychogeography: Disentangling the Modern Conundrum of Psyche and Place," itself a wild and crazy sociological look into the character of different spots around the globe. In "Two," Self and Steadman cover more turf in some 50 short, illustrated studies.” ―San Diego Union Tribune
“50+ quick, fierce sketches, each as arresting as the burp of an automatic weapon: he takes a walk, he engages in astutely freewheeling association, he creates an intense little world on the page. Ralph Steadman's artwork catches the mood of Self's progress--spidery ink-pocked phantasmagoria, waxy with menace, twisted, hallucinatory.” ―Barnes and Noble Review
“The pairing of Steadman with Self inevitably draws comparisons with [Steadman and Hunter S. Thompson] and in this way "Psycho Too" may be seen as a post-rehab take on the "new journalism" -- one that begins with 12 steps and just keeps going.” ―Associated Press
“Electrifying… hyper-reactive, peeling hot off the page in real time. Like "Psychogeography," this new collection takes us on a fresh tour of the planet. To add to the otherworldly brilliance of this densely written, vividly explored collection, each essay is accompanied by a witty, occasionally shocking and always visceral Ralph Steadman illustration. It's hard to imagine that Self's picturesque words need any illustration, but in a world so flattened by recession and dreary retrenchment, it is refreshing to be rewarded with such extravagant fare.” ―New York Times Book Review
“The quirky follow-up to the author/illustrator duo's Psychogeography. [Steadman's] pictures do far more than illustrate--they amuse, illuminate, amplify and, at times, almost editorialize on Self's text. Self crafts countless striking, buoyant phrases and/or sentences ("Wasps swarm on the lumps of chicken and beef we've left for them, then, too obese to sting, they blade-hop back to their subterranean nest in the rockery by the pool"). A journalistic feast best savored in small bites over several days.” ―Kirkus Reviews
“Self's scabrous, amphetamine prose revels in odd details and twisted associations. Steadman's evocative illustrations, which look as if Jackson Pollock had dripped on cartoons by Picasso, provide an appropriately demented visual commentary. [Self's] eye for seldom-trod byways and offbeat insights make him a diverting travel companion.” ―Publishers Weekly
About the Author
Will Self is an English novelist, journalist, political commentator and television personality. He is the author of ten novels, five collections of shorter fiction, three novellas, and five collections of non-fiction writing.
RALPH STEADMAN was born in 1936. He began his career as a cartoonist, and through the years has diversified into many creative fields. Ralph collaborated with Dr Hunter S. Thompson in the birth of 'gonzo' journalism, with Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas; he has illustrated classics such as Alice in Wonderland, Treasure Island and Animal Farm, and written and illustrated his own books, which include Sigmund Freud, I Leonardo and The Big I Am. Steadman is also a printmaker, and has travelled the world's vineyards, culminating in his books The Grapes of Ralph, Untrodden Grapes and Still Life with Bottle. Steadman's recent books for Bloomsbury include his epic collection of bird illustrations, Extinct Boids.
From The Washington Post
From The Washington Post's Book World/washingtonpost.com Reviewed by Justin Moyer moyerj@washpost.com "I've never wavered from my conviction that there's something bizarre about all those millions of Londoners who have never seen . . . the point where the River Thames flows into the North Sea," Will Self writes in "Psycho Too," the second collection of his columns from London's Independent newspaper, in which he walks through the world marveling at the geographic ignorance engendered by planes, trains and automobiles. Ralph Steadman's ghoulish, blotty caricatures embellish Self's florid, snide prose as effectively as they did the work of gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson decades ago. Unfortunately, though, these brief, breezy essays don't flourish in book form. Many, like a riff on a trip Steadman once took to Staten Island -- where Mafiosi allegedly threatened the famous artist -- succeed neither as satire nor as travelogue. The only piece that feels truly fresh is "Walking to the World," in which Self pays tribute to the late master of the fantastical short story, J. G. Ballard, by visiting an artificial, England-shaped island in Dubai. "What was the point of these rambles anyway?" Self wonders, as he passes Dubai's air-conditioned bus shelters in blistering heat. Dispensing half-baked ideology in small bites, he leaves us wondering the same thing.
Copyright 2009, The Washington Post. All Rights Reserved.
